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He’s one of only four Kenyan players to have passed the 400-run mark for his country in World Cup matches and has signalled a comeback.Ravindu Shah is not only a gifted batsman but has a knack for scoring runs on the big competitive stage and he relishes a return to the World Cup, eight years after featuring in the run-getters list headed by Rahul Dravid in the 1999 World Cup in England.Only three months ago, the 34-year-old batsman was not sure whether he would be fit enough to play cricket let alone be selected for his third World Cup appearance after being sidelined for over two years with a serious knee injury.Shah puts his strengths down to a positive mind and dedication to the game that kept him going through the hard times. “I get inspired by new challenges,” said Shah, who signalled his return to international cricket during the one-day triangular series in Mombasa in January.”I am hungry to score runs again at the top,” he added. Shah made an unbeaten 113 for his maiden ODI century against Scotland as Kenya also made a winning return in the series where Canada were also involved.A regular opener for Kenya, Shah has dropped a place down to third place in the batting order since his return and is likely to partner Steve Tikolo to add more depth in the middle in the Caribbean.Since making his breakthrough in 1998, he has scored 1425 runs in the 53 matches he has featured averaging 27.94. That included a brilliant 46 against Australia in the Super Six stage of the 2003 World Cup at Kingsmead.Shah said he was disappointed about the lack of international exposure for Kenyans, saying that players like himself are passing the prime of the lives having played so few internationals compared to other players from the Test-playing nations.”When you compare the Australians on how much they have played and how much we have played there is a big difference,” he said. “By the time this players reach 35, 34 or 33 they would have played nearly 300 to 400 ODIs but when you look at the Kenyan team we started at the same time 10 years ago and we have played between 60 to 70 matches. I believe we still have a lot of cricket in us.”Shah, who toured the West Indies with the Kenya team in 2004, said he expected tough and challenging conditions in the Caribbean but believes the Kenyans have an advantage to have an insider in Roger Harper, the former West Indies allrounder as coach.Cricket runs deep in the Shah family. Ravindu’s father played school and club cricket as his two elder brothers – one of whom went on to play for East Africa.

Ben Hilfenhaus has capped off a remarkable season with the Ricky Ponting Medal as Tasmania’s Player of the Year. Hilfenhaus was the big winner at the state’s awards night on Friday, after topping the Pura Cup wicket tally with 60 dismissals from 11 games.He also made his Twenty20 and one-day international debuts for Australia in January. Two months later, Hilfenhaus was instrumental in Tasmania winning their first Pura Cup title, taking seven wickets in the final.Michael Di Venuto, who made 961 first-class runs in 2006-07 – his best effort in 16 seasons with the state – was given the David Boon Medal as the Pura Cup Player of the Year. The Jack Simmons Medal for the state’s best one-day player was awarded to Xavier Doherty, who took 11 wickets in his nine Ford Ranger Cup matches.Matthew Wade, who made his limited-overs debut for the Tigers in February, was named Young Player of the Year for the second consecutive time. Luke Butterworth, who arrived with a bang in his maiden season of first-class cricket, received the Scott Mason Memorial Captain’s Award. Butterworth took 23 wickets in his five games and was the Man of the Match in the final, when he made his first century for Tasmania.

Jerome Taylor, the West Indies fast bowler, is in negotiations with Glamorgan for a stint following their Test and one-day tour of England which concludes in July.A spokesman from Glamorgan couldn’t confirm to Cricinfo that the deal had been finalised, but a source at the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) said talks with the county were ‘at an advanced stage’.Taylor is negotiating a sponsorship deal with Digicel which is, according to Caribbeancricket.com, reportedly worth $40,000. Should Taylor join Glamorgan, he would join a list of West Indian legends to have played for the county, including Viv Richards, Roy Fredericks and Winston Davis.And although only 22, Taylor is one of West Indies’ brightest fast bowling hopes. He has 31 wickets from his ten Tests and has been an economical and incisive one-day bowler.West Indies will play four Tests, three one-dayers and two Twenty20s against England this summer – with their last match, the third one-dayer at Trent Bridge, on July 7.

She was one of the few women to pierce the consciousness of the average cricket follower. Australia, in particular, will miss her on-field prowess. So, how do you solve a problem like finding the new Cathryn Fitzpatrick? The answer – make her your coach.Australia have just appointed her as their acting head, two months after she retired following 16 years as the world’s fastest female bowler. And in the next few weeks, she could be offered the lead roles for both Australia and England, after registering her interest for the two jobs.”I have a passion for coaching and am happy to see where the journey takes me,” she says. She thought her first stop would be Ireland, where she was all set to take on a playing/coaching role in the country, but she had to change her plans at the last minute after Mark Sorrell’s resignation.As for passion, if she’s half as fired-up in the coaching arena then whoever wins her services will be thanking their lucky stars – whichever team misses out had better watch out for their bails. She hasn’t ruled out taking on Australia’s men, or indeed any other men’s team, one day. “I don’t intend my coaching to be gender specific.”In the meantime she will hopefully be able to concentrate on developing the next Fitzpatrick. “There are certainly some fantastic bowlers around the world. India’s Jhulan Goswami will only get better, as will Katherine Brunt, of England, as long as she remains injury-free.”But is there someone to replace her in the Australian camp? “I thought Emma Sampson competed well in her first outing and as she develops a fast bowler’s body she will pick up a yard or two of pace. I think it all looks very exciting.”She won’t be drawn on which job she would prefer – “I haven’t even thought about having to make such a decision” – but she had no doubts that she would ever play for her country. “I always knew I’d play for Australia,” she says, following the Aussie rite of passage of playing in the backyard and then progressing, “but I didn’t realise how hard it was going to be.”

Over the years she’s had to learn to toughen herself up, particularly when receiving criticism from unexpected quarters. Two years ago, as part of her training to be an Academy coach, she was seconded to assist with the Australia men’s team for the Super Tests. It was widely reported that Geoff Lawson took exception, dismissing the involvement of a female as “a symptom of too many peripheral and left-field coaching ideas.”She shrugs it off. “I think Geoff’s comments were uninformed and I was disappointed that he didn’t explore the situation before making the comments. No hard feelings, though.”Lawson, a coach of elite women’s cricket, was disappointed at the reporting of his comments, and he told Cricinfo they were misconstrued. “The Australian team did not even have any sort of bowling coach at the time, and they needed one. I had been a big fan of her bowling, attitude and discipline and wish her all the best in her coaching career.”Fitzpatrick turned the whole situation into a positive – “I was overwhelmed by the support shown to me from the playing group.”Besides which, now the apprentice has turned sorcerer. She has said that whoever receives her services – and it’s a fair assumption that she’ll get at least one of the two jobs – she may just have a few secret weapons to bringto coaching. “My playing experience and the opportunity to work alongside coaches of Troy Cooley’s calibre has enabled me to add to my bag of tricks.”But like a good magician, she’s keeping the secrets secret. She will, however, explain how she conjured so many wickets: and she exclusively revealed to Cricinfo the secret of fast, accurate bowling. “Genetics – and a very strong work ethic.” Ah.So what’s it like working with Cooley? “Ace!” she grins. “Such a great guy who challenges players to strive to next the level. It doesn’t matter if you’ve played 100 games or three, you’ll learn something from Troy.” Just another thing for England’s men to kick themselves over.Fitzpatrick’s not had time to miss playing, having just recovered from a knee operation by cycling and going hard at the gym. Besides which it’s off season in Australia, “so I haven’t had to deal with it just yet.” That will come – unless, as is likely, she sweeps into a coaching role and keeps the women’s show sparkling.

It’s a dull grey Thursday at Chelmsford. Alastair Cook is on the pitch taking part in a photoshoot at his home Essex ground, all in the name of work.In exactly a week’s time he could be trotting down the Lord’s pavilion steps with Andrew Strauss to face West Indies, that intent gaze no doubt etched onto his ever-serious face. You know his look: the face of a thousand bland TV interviews, of the media-trained top-class sportsman.But today… well, today the seriousness has been replaced by a broad beam; then again there are two naked women flanking him. And there are more surprises in store. After the shoot – for a charity calendar – he reveals himself to be, contrary to the anodyne Henman-alike character on the small screen, naturally charming and surprisingly engaging. It’s all a little surreal.More unexpectedly still, he actually enjoys talking to the media and is cheerful as we sit down in the pavilion. “I don’t normally get to do interviews,” he says, with enthusiasm, while chomping away on some sandwiches from M&S. “I’m quite laidback.” I’d noticed. Anyway, it’s not as if he reads pieces about him – then there is a pause as he realises what he’s said. “I do, but I don’t pay too much attention!”But what is he doing at Chelmsford on his day off? As a centrally contracted player Cook’s busy enough without arriving to be snapped leaning on a lawnmower or dressed as an umpire while the two models Emma and Natalie, painted in the ECB colours, giggle suggestively. He finds it all brilliant, though. “Having to stare at naked women they didn’t have to twist my arm too much!”In the background, the Essex PR, Greg, shakes his head gently. Unfazed, Cook merely clarifies: “Better being honest than trying to make up some rubbish!” You can’t argue. And of course it’s all in a good cause, for the CHASE Ben Hollioake Fund, set up to remember Ben, Adam’s brother, who died in car crash in 2002. Cook didn’t know Ben, but he met Adam last year, and he’s happy to do his bit to help.

He’s a breath of fresh air, in the way that his batting breezed new life into England stage the day he strode onto the international stage in India in 2006, making 60 and 104 not out in his first two innings. But importantly, he’s confident, not arrogant – and he feels he’s far from the finished product.”I think you always have something to prove, always to yourself, especially at the start of the season, with a new coach coming in.” Three first-class centuries to kick off this season weren’t enough proof for him, then. “Shame there wasn’t a double hundred,” he flashes back. When pressed he does stretch to “I feel as if I’m hitting the ball quite cleanly”. He’d done more than enough to keep his England spot, particularly given Michael Vaughan’s absence.It’s not just about proving, though, it’s about constantly improving: “Your place is never certain.” That’s the hallmark of a future champion, that Warne-like desire to learn. Then again, Cook actually did have to improve.The winter wasn’t a high point: he was found out Down Under – with just one century, at Perth – and then left out of the one-day set-up from January. He admits missing the World Cup in particular was tough. “It was hard seeing the lads out there and wanting to be there. I didn’t watch too much. I just tried to get away from it and do my own thing.”

That thing was focussing on his shots on and around off-stump. “I’d be stupid not to. The Aussies got me out that way.” Still, he didn’t go overboard on correctional work: “It’s as much mental as it is technical.” He’s candid, though, about his need to improve on certain aspects. “Practising catching a ball always helps!” he says, alluding to his less-than-perfect fielding. But again he’s worked hard and it’s all made him tougher.He’s hungry, too, for more bites at the one-day cherry. In his two ODIs to date he showed an unexpected aggression, but he insists it’s part of his natural armour. “I’ve always got the shots. In Test match cricket you’ve got time to bat. You don’t want to play an aggressive shot and get out. In one-day cricket you’ve got to be more aggressive.”He wasn’t always so calm. “I was a fiery youngster,” he says, as if he’s now way beyond his 22 years. (He does look older, though, with his square jaw and mature frame, and he acts it, too. Only, it’s no act.) “I had a bit of a temper. That’s where you’ve got to learn to bat. Everyone makes mistakes, you play and miss. It’s playing the next ball. That’s Goochie’s thing, play the next ball.”That’s Graham Gooch, of course, head batting coach at Essex – who he won’t be seeing much of if he continues with England. Happily, though, he’s just been reunited with two old acquaintances, England’s new coaches. He can’t wait to work with Peter Moores, who he knows from Academy and England A days (Moores recommended him for the India call-up) – “I know he will put his heart and soul into it” – and then there’s the assistant, Andy Flower, who he played with at Essex.Flower provided an example of never-say-die on the pitch and the pair shared many successful partnerships. “It was the way you watched him batting at the other end and he wouldn’t get out, so you thought you couldn’t get out, either”.England’s first challenge in their brave new world is West Indies, about whom he’s guarded, “They’re massive wounded animals”. He’s warier still of India, whose bowlers he played so well in his debut series. “They really have world-class players.” Not to mention a point to prove. “That will be a tough battle.” He will be battle-ready.He’s looking no further, though – the India series is far, far away in his mind as it is, so there’s not much room for talking about him as a future England captain. “You can get too ahead of yourself. That would be great but it’s not something I’m going to chase. I’d rather keep my place in the England side and try to win for England.” England, as ever, will keep expecting.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

The end came quickly. Lasith Malinga fired in the yorkers, while MuttiahMuralitharan ripped the doosras and offspinners as Sri Lanka cleaned up the last five Bangladesh wickets to sweep to victory by an innings and 234 runs.Bangladesh had fought hard on the third day, raising hopes of a similargritty effort today, but Malinga and Murali had other ideas. The action began off the tenth delivery of the day. Khaled Mashud played all around a yorker from Malinga which swung in late. Malinga then proceeded to unsettle Mashrafe Mortaza with fiery yorkers and bouncers before Murali swooped in for the kill. A doosra that landed on the middle trapped Mortaza plumb in front.Malinga soon turned his attention to Shakib Al Hasan. With a shortcover in place, he hurled a short-of-length delivery around the offstump. As if hyptonised, Shakib punched it limply straight to thatfielder. Two balls later, Mohammad Rafique was done in by a peach of aslower yorker that dipped in late to clean up the middle stump.Murali dealt the final blow – which gave him match figures of 9 for 102 – with an offbreak that spun in viciously. Shahadat Hossain lunged at it, and ended up dragging his back foot out of the crease. The Bangladesh tail had collapsed in just 30 minutes on the fourth morning, as Sri Lanka marched to a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series.The second Test starts on July 3 at the P Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsHow they were out

An unbeaten century from Tim Bresnan, his second in first-class cricket, and a 129-run partnership with Stuart Broad for the eighth wicket, allowed England Lions to gain the upper hand at the end of the first day against the touring Indians at Chelmsford. The Indian bowlers, led by the experienced Zaheer Khan, made an impact in the second session but Joe Denly’s aggressive 83 at the start, as well as the Bresnan-Broad union, overshadowed that effort.Barring a brief 20 overs under the mid-afternoon sun, the bowlers struggled on a benign surface. Andrew Strauss, who won a good toss, failed to capitalise on the good batting conditions, as did Owais Shah but a trio of batsmen with contrasting styles – Denly, Bresnan and Broad – made India pay. A middle-order collapse raised visions of an fightback but three dropped catches, allied with the Indians’ inability to polish off the tail, returned to haunt them.The Lions dominated at the start of the day, suffered a blip in the middle before solidifying their position towards the end. Denly, the 21-year-old opener who has been in red-hot form for Kent, began as if this was a one-dayer, clattering Zaheer for as many as five fours in an over, racing to 43 in just 29 balls. Bresnan, the 22-year-old allrounder from Yorkshire, was relatively more compact in his style and showed how well he could bat with the tail, guiding them from a modest 225 for 7 to a healthy 379 for 8 at close.Bresnan has chipped in with the bat with some handy contributions this season, helping Yorkshire to the top of the County Championship table. He walked in at 185 for 6, with Zaheer and Ramesh Powar turning in a fine spell in tandem, but survived the early moments confidently. Ravinder Bopara fell soon, at the stroke of tea, but Broad provided him good company after the interval. Broad enjoyed large dollops of good fortune – Wasim Jaffer grassed a tough chance at short leg before MS Dhoni and Ramesh Powar fluffed a sitter apiece. It allowed Broad to get into his groove before opening up with some handsome lofts over the infield.But it was Denly who was the most confident batsmen on view. He was particularly severe on Zaheer’s full-pitched deliveries early on and it was only when the length changed that he was in any trouble. He brought up his fifty with a crisp crack through midwicket and went to lunch set for a big one. However he couldn’t resist the temptation to charge down the track to a flighted offbreak from Powar, left a big gap between bat and pad and watched MS Dhoni pull off a neat stumping.His dismissal fired up the Indians, especially Zaheer, in what was their most successful passage of play. Zaheer cranked up his pace and mixed up his length well, occasionally slipping in a well-directed bouncer, and didn’t flag at any point. Jonathan Trott, who reached 40 without much problem, was suddenly rattled and fell to a half-hearted drive away from his body.Tim Ambrose followed soon, undone by a fuller ball that ricocheted off the edge to the wicketkeeper. Bopara and Bresnan added 40 in quick time but Sachin Tendulkar, bringing himself on just before tea, lured Bopara into an airy flick, only for Dinesh Karthik to pull off a smart reflex catch at short leg. It gave the Indians a sniff but proved to be the last cheery moment of the day.

Lalchand Rajput, India’s Under-19 coach, has been named cricket manager of the Indian team for the Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa next month. Rajput will take over from Chandu Borde, who is managing the team on the current tour of England.Robin Singh and Venkatesh Prasad will continue as fielding and bowling coaches, Rajiv Shukla, vice-president of the Board for Control of Cricket in India, said.The board is expected to advertise for a new coach to take charge of the team after the Twenty20 tournament. “We want to get a coach as early as possible,” Shukla said after a meeting of senior board officials in New Delhi. The Indian team has been without a coach since Greg Chappell stepped down following the team’s World Cup exit in March.Mahendra Singh Dhoni had earlier been named captain of the team for the Twenty20 tournament, which Rahul Dravid, the regular captain, and seniors Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly had decided to skip.Shukla also said a new National Cricket Academy would be built at Bangalore, for which the Karnataka government is expected to allot land. The board also announced that the Brabourne Stadium would host a Twenty20 game between India and Australia on October 20, following a seven-match ODI series between the two sides.

Andrew Flintoff has had a steroid injection in his left ankle in a bid to play in the deciding one-day international against India at Lord’s and be available for the ICC World Twenty20.Flintoff has missed three matches in the current series, one with swelling behind his right knee and two after jarring his ankle during the fourth game at Old Trafford. He had a lengthy bat in the nets at Lord’s and bowled under the watchful eyes of Peter Moores and the England medical team.”There is no pain reaction as of now,” said Moores, “but we have to wait until the morning. It is very difficult to identify what it [the problem] is. We will look into that and hopefully we can rein it in and make him ready for the longer term. We don’t know when the pain is going to come back or not.”At the moment the medical team is assessing him and he is already wearing a special boot that will help him. We have to try and make sure that it settles down and the injection will help for that. He batted and bowled today, and now we have to wait for the ECB medical team’s word on whether we can play him tomorrow.”It is the first steroid injection Flintoff has had since the Melbourne Test last winter and he has previously said how he doesn’t want to rely on them because of the long-term effects on his body. However, Moores is confident that the latest jab is the best way to get Flintoff back onto the field.”The injection is to take the pain away and get that inflammation down, and it is the first stage. It is a way of injury management. They [the medical team] were very conscious with the injection and it wasn’t into the joints. I am not a medical man, but they said the risk with the injection is minimal and we can go ahead with it.”

The formal process of appointing Bangladesh’s new coach has commenced with John Harmer making his presentation to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) officials. The panel members were impressed with Harmer’s knowledge of bowling and bio-mechanics and said that the formal appointment would have to wait till next month once the remaining candidates are interviewed.”His knowledge of the game, error detection, and expertise on bowling impressed us,” Gazi Ashraf Hossain, a panel member was quoted in the . “However, it is too early to detail the outcome because we have just started the process.”Hossain said that Harmer would conduct a training session on Saturday with the contracted players not included in the squad for the Twenty20 World Championship, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.Bangladesh are hoping to complete the process ahead of the tour of New Zealand in December. Zimbabwean Dave Houghton and Australian Jamie Siddons are the other two candidates. The team is currently under coach Shaun Williams, filling in on a temporary basis through the World Championship later this month.”David Houghton is likely to make his presentation in September and we can only give you a clear picture after the interview ends,” Hossain said. “But we must do it before the New Zealand tour in December.”Harmer, the former England women’s coach, expressed satisfaction after the meeting said – if appointed – his aim would be to improve Bangladesh’s world ranking, taking it one step at a time.”It was a very good meeting where we had a lot of discussions and negotiations,” Harmer said. “I want to make the team a little better than what they are at the moment, if I got the job. Bangladesh is a leading international side, ranked eighth after the World Cup and I will try to make them number seven at first.”